Freight trucking is the lifeblood of the U.S. economy, carrying 73 percent of all domestic freight — and producing a quarter of the nation's transportation emissions. Electric trucks, like the one driven by Pat Brandon, will help bring that to zero.
December 9, 2021
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Freight trucking is the lifeblood of the U.S. economy. The American trucking industry moves roughly 73% of all domestic freight — trillions of dollars in shipments — each year, and employs millions of people across the nation.
It’s also the second-largest contributor to transportation emissions, which account for America’s biggest share of overall greenhouse gas emissions.
Today, as we work toward President Biden’s goals of cutting our emissions in half by 2030 and achieving net-zero by 2050, the need to electrify our nation’s cars — and trucks — is clear.
That’s why Department of Energy is hitting the accelerator on efforts to modernize the nation’s fleet of heavy- and medium-duty trucks that haul our food, our consumer goods, and virtually everything else. We’re investing in projects to get more electric trucks on the road, as well as improving battery technologies, reducing engine emissions, and advancing vehicle connectivity and automation. Recent priorities include:
- Electrifying DOE’s vehicle fleet—transitioning to 92 electric vehicles, all made in America.
- Supporting efforts to electrify trucks from a range of weight classes through our $127 million SuperTruck 3 initiative.
- Setting ambitious goals to slash the cost of battery packs in roughly half.
- Lowering the cost of clean hydrogen to $1 for 1 kilogram by 2030 through our Energy Earthshot Initiative.
- Working to revitalize our domestic supply chain of critical materials including lithium, an essential ingredient in EV batteries.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will further support future innovations and manufacturing of EV truck batteries and vehicles — including more than $7 billion to bolster the American supply chain for batteries that are essentially to powering our economy with clean affordable and resilient energy and transportation options. It also includes an addition 7.5 billion in funding aimed at building out a national EV corridor covering all parts of the country and achieving the Administration's goal of 500,000 EV charges across the country.
Since President Biden took office, DOE has mobilized over $2.5 billion to innovate the clean energy technologies that will carry us down the road to a clean energy future — designed, sourced, and assembled right here in America, by American companies and American workers. We’re in this for the long haul!